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Making Waves: Daniel Isaac swaps Dentsu for GroupM

Mumbrella can reveal chief operating officer of Dentsu Media, Daniel Isaac is joining GroupM’s Wavemaker as managing director of its Melbourne office.

Isaac departs Dentsu after two and a half years, joining initially in 2019 as CEO of agency DentsuX. Shortly after in 2020 when DentsuX was rolled into stablemate Carat, Isaac took on the wider operations role.

Isaac: Looking forward to getting back on the frontline

Isaac has more than two decades of experience in the media market, with experience across major groups including Omnicom Media Group, IPG Mediagrands, and Publicis’ Zenith.

He replaces Nathan Cook, who was previously in the role and who is taking on a client-side position as regional marketing director in the APAC region for Tempur Sealy International. Isaac will also join the national leadership team.

Joining Wavemaker on 1 May, Isaac will head up the Melbourne offering, which is responsible for some of the agency’s largest clients, including L’Oréal, Mondelez, Australia Post, Doordash, Jetstar, a2 milk, and Honda MPE.

National CEO, Peter Vogel said: “Daniel is an experienced and well-respected Melbournian media agency leader, who will hit the ground running alongside our Melbourne team. His expertise across media principles, marketing science and technology paired with his experience with every major category and entrepreneurial spirit, will ensure that we continue to work hand in glove with our media partners to drive innovation, value and growth for our clients.

National CEO, Peter Vogel

Isaac said of his move: “What I’m most excited about is getting back to the frontline of what media agencies do at an agency and network that has both growth and purpose baked in to everything they do. I’m looking forward to leading a team of talented people with a growth focus and a passion for clients, diving into client relationships, which are at the heart of agencies, and making an impact for Wavemaker’s impressive portfolio of clients.”

CEO of Dentsu Media ANZ, Sue Squillace confirmed Isaac’s departure to Wavemaker: “We would like to thank him and wish him all the best.”

She added: “Ben Joyce has taken on the responsibility of the Media COO role as a natural extension of his Group COO role.” Joyce is Dentsu International chief operating officer.

On Cook’s departure, Vogel thanked him for the past three and a half years, and further thanked him on behalf of the group for his 20-year tenure which included roles at Mindshare, Maxus (now Wavemaker), and Ikon (WPP).

“His professionalism and dedication has helped Wavemaker grow into one of the leading agencies in-market, with an incredibly strong and talented team. We wish Nathan the very best in the next phase of his career client side, and I have no doubt he will make a great impact on their business.”

Cook moves to Tempur Sealy International

Isaac also joins his former OMG colleague Aimee Buchanan at GroupM. Isaac was managing director of United, OMG’s bespoke agency for car brands Nissan and Renault, based out of Melbourne. He joined PHD in 2013 as strategy director, then being promoted to general manager of the Melbourne office in 2015.

Dentsu executive Sam Hegg also departed the media business two weeks ago to join the growing retail media offering at supermarket giant, Coles. Hegg left DentsuX, where he was managing director at the time of Isaac’s arrival, moving across to its new offering Dentsu Solutions,

 

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